The Little Vampire

Director:

Ulrich Edel

New Line Cinema; 95 minutes; PG

Release:

10/00

Cast:

Jonathan Lipnicki, James Carter, Alice Krige

The Little Vampire arrives in time for Halloween, draining the scary creatures of their blood but replacing them with humor appropriate for the grade school set. Young Tony Thompson (Jonathan Lipnicki, the cute kid from Jerry Maguire) and family move from San Francisco to Scotland. It isn't easy adjusting, with the neighborhood bullies and nightmares involving comets and the undead. Things turn better when Tony meets Rudolph (Rollo Weeks), a nice 9-year-old boy who happens to be in an undead clan whose members are trying desperately to rid themselves of a vampire curse and become human. Don't worry—Rudolph only drinks bovine blood, leading to a running gag about vampire cows who act like bats in the barn. His poor cursed family must locate a magic amulet and avoid a vampire hunter to shake off their eternal lot.

Much of The Little Vampire's charm comes from its comforting attitude—nothing is too scary for the kids, but the screenwriters win parent points by including movie references right and left.